128 SHORT STALKS 



later lie arrived at the rock where the quarry, ^Yhich was 

 now far away, had been lying, and began to throw rocks 

 down. He finally rejoined the strangers, and appeared to 

 think that he was being congratulated on his spirit. Later 

 on, yet another was spied lying favourably placed on a 

 clitf, but when the spot was reached it had gone, having 

 probably heard the nailed boots on the rocks. This was a 

 difficulty which we afterwards found it very hard to avoid. 



In the meanwhile the rest of us, with the mule train, 

 followed a well-engineered path constructed by the French 

 to give easy access to a tower of observation which they 

 have built on the highest point of the mountain. After 

 three hours of steep ascent, we halted at a convenient 

 plateau a little short of the summit. This was a most 

 attractive camping ground, l)ut I saw at a glance that, 

 with uncertain weather, it would be far too exposed, 

 especially as one of our tents had Ijeen temporarily lost on 

 the railway, and our men would be very imperfectly 

 sheltered by the make-shifts which we had 1)rought from 

 El Kantara. 



It commanded, however, a marvellous view. The 

 Metlili is the highest point for many miles, except to 

 the north, in which direction we were slightly overtopped 

 by the cedar forest ranges near Batna. To the east, 

 but at a distance of many miles, the great mass of the 

 Aures, crow^ned by the highest point in Algiers, the 

 Chellia, now white with snow, rose perhaps three 

 thousand feet hioher than where we stood. But to 

 the south who can describe the wonderful expanse of 

 the desert which lay four thousand feet below us ? To 

 my mind there is no panorama so interesting as a 



